European Entrepreneurs CEA-PME Position Paper on New Taxes from the EU: SMEs Strongly Oppose Any Attempt to Increase the Tax Burden Even More!

The
European Commission is pushing for a digital tax, but an initial
proposal for a Robot Tax is also in the offing. Moreover a discussion of the Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base - CCCTB has restarted.

The planned digital tax would amount to 3% of sales without any possibility to deduct business expenses. This means that the digital tax would be similar to a customs duty. There are fears that this would mean pouring petrol on the raging fire of Donald Trump’s trade war.

The CCCTB, while stemming from the good principle of fighting tax evasion and fraud, is unlikely to success to curb tax dodging by multinationals. Indeed, it is far easier for large multinationals, compared to other companies, to take advantage of the international tax divide.On the other hand, SMEs would risk paying even higher taxes if the changes foreseen in establishing the tax base make it necessary to apply the laws of high-tax jurisdictions.

Moreover the recently proposed actions to tackle BEPS (Base Erosion and Profit Shifting) and cross-border VAT fraud are also putting a burden too heavy on the shoulders of European small and medium-sized companies, the backbone of the European economy.

This another attempt in a line of failed proposals for new taxes at European level, like the EU Financial Transaction Tax and the Carbon Tax.

In the past, thanks to the necessary unanimous vote of the Member States, similar attempts floundered. But despite this, the
Commission continues to put these matters on the agenda.

Over the past 20 years
the general tax revenue has grown by more than 100%, corporate taxes by
almost 150%. Thus, no “erosion” of tax revenues can be claimed to
justify the introduction of ever new taxes.

SMEs strongly oppose any attempt to increase the tax burden even more!